Pipe joint



R. B. SHORE Sept. 27, 1949.

PIPE JOINT Filed March 10, 1944 F IG.4

FIG. 6

INVENTOR. RICHARD B. SHORE 'ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 27, 1949 UNITEDsTrATEs eat-em QEF'ICE.

PIPE JOINT I hishe di B- shet gw m Iowav ssi -hor o Deese Manufaeturing;(39".. a, corporation of Iowa Application March 10, 1944;, Sorta-E No,525,836:

2 Claims. (013185549),

The. present, intention relates general yt l:

sheet. metal eonstr-uaii imote nast w ly to meansion and the method oi:connec n a e-to. a wall: of sheet metal 0 he ke; and

is well adapted but. not limited-to inlet @6502?- let, fist-hues forsheetme al t nks. heh

hiete fuel tanhsand'thh -lfike. HesetoIore, conventional outletfittingsfos fuel; tank and t like have usually taken the form offlanged; hushines inserted ths neh open n s: t e sh against thesurfiaceofi; the tank and bein fix theme, by; soldzexzing; rivetinweldin r t relates to the provisionot-unovel ands'improved means formaking a. connection with a sheet metal tank wall or the like. which canwithstand consldenably greater foncestending to rotate the bushin'relativeto the well without loosening the connection between. thebushing andthe. wall, thereby pneventingt the. opourleence of' leaksaround the bushing.

A more speoifioobjeotot-myinvention relates to the provision of: aconneo-tinnlin which. the sheet metalof theewal lw is Ltorm'ectinto aninterlooking relationwith the. fitting; In the accomplishment otthisobject; the sheetmetal: is psessed'or drawntorprovi'de asocketorreeessin which the-fitting isLadaptedto-seat; and then is further secured byswag-mg"- the-. sheet metal around; i the tonpsevent separation of thefitting from the wattl without an. actual distortion or failure otthesheet. metalsaround the fitting.- A objeot-hasrto. do. with filling therecess about theefitting withsolden on other seali-ngmaterial; 'fihisipnovidesa gas: on liquid-tight connection whichdQBSrHfit-i dependentirely upon the-bond: 0e adhesive'stsen-gth of; the. filling orsealing material; asis the case in conventional fittmg mountings,- in]:the-seatingr-and intenlockmg arrangement between-- the fitting and.there.- oess. requires: that the sheet. metal; forming the a n al she to e fi ting h e ua y d,- r htols abeior t olider on other sealingmaterial tornloose- "these. an o herobieo and: a v n ages. of minvention will" be apparent to those skilled in t e art ai ha. eo id taoa t he f l n deon. nd r w hes a pen d ereto, in

1 v an on-views a hor oh f wal ha na. an h -s ne; the in pteea ed o d ne r ne p e of n en ion.

. e tio a i t ken alone h in 1- n. Fi u eh.

Eigure 3 is a side elevational viewofa bushing adapted to. be installedwithin-the openingshown sto I nd;

- i hts s pla v e of on n f h u h ns sh n figu e 3:.

E t ifQ s ie s ew sho n bushing ihsta ed w hin th QP ns-i-n the wa l,before solde n i a-s on l el vationai view t ken .nt tes t e, m n w llof a. first memas a ank ma e e t t in-v Sheet ma e: sheet met a cord n tth pr s nt em:- hodiment: o s desired to m k the conno ation, Th n deuri ce of h a kind eatedby re en e numer l: ti; and h p ns.- n he. anknd ca d gen ra ist y refer-r l2:.. Ae o di etc: th present eh on, he s tm al: s d awn to p ov d e ema- 2 w rela ed wa l ections: formin an. f sposition lztap o siin ndentation or-recess: I: generally in the shape ofacup belowthe inner shtfi ee I of e: wall I02 andrarouhd: h onenne tThe: recess or cup: 1 s: poly on l n Shane, here be ng six. s d s i5:shown in the present mbodiment. An. annular flan [6 en tends;-'dewn,w.aljdly from the bottom; of the cup in hythe-ofiset- IQQITZIOB':t3.- and s rrou ds th op ng [2,;extending aKia1-lyaway from; the si l.-

. hot; the Wall t0;

Prefe rably, the opening: I52 and the offset portion around the openingis made in a single oper'ation by means of a compound die, which isapplied underpressure upon thesheet metal wall, simultaneously-punchinthe hole and v pressing the recess, according: to. principles.-well-known to thosesk-i-lled-in the. art;

A second: member on bushing 29'. comprises. an

amouLsr bochr at. which; is; generally. circular in 'eazose. seotionand-has on one, end thereof. anlan The head 24 of the bushing ishexagonal, and is similar in size and shape to the recess l4 in thesheet metal wall 10. The bushing has a central aperture 21 with interiorthreads 28 adapted to receive a fitting such as an elbow, nipple, draincock or the like.

The bushing is installed in the opening l2 by pressing the bead portion22 downwardly through the flange l5 until the bead snaps through beyondthe end of the flange l6, after which the radial inner surface 23 of thebead abuts the edge of the flange l6 and the bottom 25 of the bushingseats on the bottom of the recess. With ordinary grades of sheet metal,however, the flange I6 is not elastic enough to snap into place andfirmly embrace the body 2! of the bushing and therefore it is desirableto swage the flange by placing an annular tool over the header end ofthe bushing and exerting pressure thereupon to press'the flange intoclose contact with the body 2|, behind the shoulder 23 as shown inFigure 6. In this position, the hexagonal head 24 of the bushing seatswithin the recess l4, being relatively tightly surrounded by the sidewall portions of the cup, and the upper end fo the head is substantiallyflush with the surface I! of the wall ID. The bushing is then solderedinto the recess, preferably by applying heat to the offset portion l3 ofthe wall from below as viewed in Figure 6, and flowing sealing material,such as solder, in from above, filling the pocket means provided byspace between the conical bushing surface 26 and the plane or generallevel of the upper surface H of the wall, as indicated at 30, until thesurface of the solder 3B is flush with the top of the bushing head andthe surface ll of the wall. This makes a neat, smooth surface on theinside of the tank, which permits the latter to be drained completely inthose cases where the bushing is used as an outlet connection, and thesolder also firmly secures the bushing in the recess portion of thetank. Some of the solder 30 will run down under the head of the bushingand between the body of the bushing and the lower flange I6, andeffectively seals the bushing in the recess to prevent any leakage offluid around the outside of the bushing.

One of the principal advantages of this type of connection, however, isthat the solder is not relied upon to prevent the bushing from rotatingrelative to the wall [0 when the fitting is screwed into the threads 28or when the fitting is unscrewed after an extended period of use inwhich the threads 28 may have become corroded. The sides 15 of therecess l4 embrace the polygonal head 24 of the bushing sufiicientlyclosely to retain the bushing against rotation when such force isapplied. It is evident from the above description that by seating thefitting within the recess and swaging the flange around the body of thefitting, the interlocking effect of the sheet metal with the fittingproduces an extremely strong and durable joint that is suflicient forsome purposes. The addition of the solder produces an even strongerjoint, which does not depend upon the adhesive strength of the solderfor support but rather, the solder rigidifies and supplements theinterlock between the parts, as well as sealing the joint againstleakage of gas or liquid. Failure of the solder does not occur unlessthe sheet metal around the fitting is actually torn or stretchedsufficient to transfer the forces to the sealing material to stress thelatter beyond its elastic limit. Various kinds of sealing material canbe used depending on the purpose of the joint, For instance, a plasticor a rubber material can be employed. It is not essential that thismaterial be poured in liquid form after the fitting is in place, but maybe inserted in the form of a gasket between the fitting and the sheetmetal.

Although the present embodiment of my invention is based upon the use ofa bushing, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited tosuch, for the same principles may be used for installing other types offittings. Furthermore, the bushing can be used in sheet metal structuresother than tanks. For example, the bushing can be installed in a sheetmetal wall and adapted to receive a brace rod or the like, 7

I do not intend my invention to be limited to the exact details shownand described herein, except as set forth in the claims which follow.

I claim:

1. In combination, a wall of thin sheet material having a circularopening therein, said material being offset to provide a'recess orindentation polygonal in-shape around said opening and a circular flangearound the opening extending away from said sheet, .a fitting ofcircular cross section and having a head around one end and a polygonalhead at the other end, said bead being adapted to be pressed throughsaid opening andengage the end of said flange and said head beingadapted to'seat in said recess, the polygonal head interfitting withsaid polygonal recess to prevent rotation of said fitting in saidopening. V

2. The combination set forth in claim 1 including the further provisionof sealing material filling the spaces between said fitting head andsaid recess and adapted toprevent leakage of fluid around said fitting.

3(In combinatioma sheet metal Wall having a circular opening therein,the sheet metal being oifset to provide a polygonal recess orindentation around said opening and a circular flange around the openingextending away from said wall, a bushing of generally circular crosssection disposed within said opening and closely embraced by saidflange, said bushings'having apolygonal radial flange seated in saidrecess to prevent rotation of said bushing therein and a bead around theend of the bushing engaging the'end of said sheet metal flange aroundthe opening in said wall, said circular flange of the wall being adaptedto be swaged behind said flange after the bushing is in place.

4. In sheet metal tank construction, the combination with a sheet metalwall having a circular opening therein, the sheet metal being ofiset toprovide a polygonal recess or indentation around said opening, a bushingof generally circular cross section'extending through said opening andhaving a'polygonal radialflange seated in said recess and substantiallysimilar in size and shape to the latter to prevent rotation of saidbushing relative to said wall, said flange being substantially flushwith the surface of the wall adjacent said recess, and sealing meanscomprising solder or the like filling the spaces between said flange andthe recess in which it is seated, said sealing means being flush withsaid Wall surface to form a smooth fluid-tight seal around said bushing.

5. In sheet metal tank construction, the combination of a sheet metalwall having a circular opening therein, the sheet metal being onset toprovide a polygonal recess or indentation around said opening outwardlyof the inner surface of said wall, and a circular flange around theopening extending away from said wall, a bushing of generally circularcross section extending through said flange and closely embracedthereby, a bead on the outer end of said bushing engaging the outer endof said flange, a polygonal head on the inner end of said bushing ofgenerally similar size and shape to said recess and seated in the latterto prevent rotation of said bushing relative to said wall, and sealingmeans comprising solder or the like filling the spaces between said headand the recess in which it is seated, said sealing means and the innerend of said bushing being flush with the inner wall surface to provide asmooth fluid-tight surface around the opening in said bushing.

6. In combination, a wall of sheet material havin a circular openingtherein, said material being ofiset to provide a continuous recess orindentation surrounding the opening and having the shape of a regularpolygon, a fitting having a circular portion disposed within saidopening and a polygonal portion similar in size and shape to and seatedin and held by said recess against relative rotation about the axis ofsaid opening, and means for securing said fitting within said open-111g.

7. In combination, a Wall of sheet material hav-' ing a circular openingtherein, said material bein offset to provide a continuous recess orindentation surrounding the opening and having the shape of a regularpolygon, said material further having a circular flange around theopening extending axially away from said recess, a fitting of circularcross section disposed in said opening and closely embraced by saidflange and having a polygonal portion of size and shape substantiallycoincident with and seated in said recess and substantially flush withthe surface of said wall, and means securing said fitting within saidflange.

8. The combination set forth in claim 7, including the further provisionthat said securing means comprises sealing material filling the spacesbetween said fitting head and said recess and adapted to prevent leakageof fluid around said fitting.

9. In combination: a first member including a main wall and a pair ofadjoining integral wall sections providing a recess or indentationgenerally in the shape of a cup having its side wall portions at anangle to the main wall and its bottom at an angle to the side wallportions and displaced away from the general level of the main wall sothat the main wall adjoins generally the rim of the cup; a second membercarried by the first member and relatively tightly surrounded by theside Wall portions of the cup and seating on the bottom of the cup, saidsecond member having reduced portions below the rim of the cup and thelevel of the main Wall to cooperate with the rim for providing pocketmeans Within the confines of the cup side Wall portions; and sealingmaterial contained in the pocket means to the level of the main wall andoverlying said reduced portions to seal the joint between the secondmember and both the main wall and side wall portions of the cup.

10. The invention defined in claim 9, further characterized in that: thewall section providing the side walls of the cup is annular butnoncircular and the second member is similarly shaped and sized toestablish a torque-resisting interlock substantially isolating thesealing material from torsional stress due to potential relativerotation between the two members about the axis of the cup.

11. The invention defined in claim 10, further characterized in that:the shape of the side walls of the cup is that of a regular polygonformed about the axis of the cup and the shape and size of the secondmember within the cup are similar to those of said side wall portions.

12. The invention defined in claim 11, further characterized in that:the bottom of the cup has a circular opening surrounded by an annularflange, the second member extends axially through said opening and hasan annular groove, and said flange is swaged into said groove.

RICHARD B. SHORE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Great Britain July 31, 1939

